A 12-day football extravaganza featuring some of the world’s most famous clubs gets under way at Aspire Zone today as the ninth Al Kass International Cup begins. Team officials and tournament organisers convened at the Torch Doha Hotel yesterday, where the Cup’s format, rules and regulations were outlined. The competition, which takes place on pitches four and five at Aspire’s state-of-the-art facility, will see 12 under 16 teams bidding for glory, with Scottish outfit Glasgow Rangers seeking to retain the trophy they won in impressive style last year.
The Scots, inspired by youth internationals Kai Kennedy and Nathan Young-Coombes, edged out Roma on penalties to lift the trophy 12 months ago, but they will have to be at their best to repeat that success.
Three-time winners Paris Saint-Germain return to Doha in determined mood, after failing to perform to their usual standards last year, but much interest will focus on Spanish giants Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. Real won this trophy in 2017, while Barcelona make their third appearance in the competition and will look to add their name to an impressive roll of honour. The competition provides a perfect opportunity to see some of the world’s best young talent in action, whether in person (entry is free of charge), on TV or online.
Official tournament sponsors Al Kass TV will broadcast all matches live, with both Arabic and English commentary. Live streaming of all the matches will also be available on http://internationalcup.alkass.net.
Hopes of a local victory rest with hosts Aspire Academy, and the home youngsters will be aiming to follow in the footsteps of Akram Afif, who appeared in this tournament earlier in his career before going on to taste success with Al Sadd, as well as playing a starring role as Qatar lifted the Asian Cup for the first time in 2019.
Essa al-Hitmi, Chairman of the Organising Committee of Al Kass International Cup, and General Manager of Al Kass Sports Channels, is thrilled with the success of the tournament. “We are again delighted to attract young players from some of the world’s leading clubs to Qatar,” he said. “We have seen players like Kingsley Coman, Moussa Dembele and of course Akram Afif go on to great things after playing in the Al Kass International Cup earlier in their careers, and maybe we will see a future Leo Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo playing here over the next 12 days.”
Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed al-Thani, President of Qatar Football Association, said: “We are delighted to support this tournament once again. Football is popular in Qatar, as witnessed by the euphoria shown by the entire country when our nation won the Asian Cup last year, and interest in football will only increase as we get nearer to the 2022 FIFA World Cup.”
Nasser al-Khater, CEO of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, said: “We are proud to be strategic partners of this year’s Al Kass International Cup and once again support this fantastic tournament. Aspire Zone boasts world-class sporting facilities so it’s one of the best places for these young talented footballers to train, compete, and develop their skills. This year’s tournament features some of the world’s biggest teams and most promising players so we’re excited to see who will take home the cup. I am sure we will welcome many of this year’s players back here as part of their national teams in 2022 for the FIFA World Cup Qatar. Best of luck to all of the players involved.”
Tonight’s opening match of the tournament is a repeat of the 2018 final, as PSG line up against consistent Japanese outfit Kashiwa Reysol. The second game of the day sees Aspire Academy taking on Suwon Samsung of South Korea. The Al Kass International Cup has established itself as a key international football event that supports the Qatar National Vision 2030 and contributes to building on the foundations of a proud footballing nation, up to the 2022 FIFA World Cup and beyond.
Previous winners
2012: Paris St-Germain
2013: Fluminense
2014: Aspire Football Dreams
2015: Paris St-Germain
2016: Aspire Football Dreams
2017: Real Madrid
2018: Paris St-Germain
2019: Glasgow Rangers
Fixtures
Group stages: Today: 4.45pm: Paris St-Germain v Kashiwa Reysol; 7pm: Aspire Academy v Suwon Samsung
Tomorrow: 4.45pm: Inter Milan v Mohammed VI Academy; FC Zenit v Real Madrid
Feb 15: 4.45pm: Suwon Samsung v Glasgow Rangers; 7pm: Kashiwa Reysol v FC Barcelona
Feb 16: 4.45pm: Altinordu v Mohammed VI Academy; 7pm: Real Madrid v Sporting Lisbon
Feb 17: 4.45pm: Aspire Academy v Glasgow Rangers; 7pm: Paris St-Germain v FC Barcelona
Feb 18: 4.45pm: Inter Milan v Altinordu; 7pm: Sporting Lisbon v FC Zenit
Positions 9-12: Feb 19: 4.45pm: Position 9 v Position 10; 7.15pm: Position 11 v Position 12;
Quarter-finals: Feb 19: 4.45pm: Group A winners v Group C runner-up; Group C winners v Group A runner-up
Feb 20: Group B winner v Group D runner-up (game 17); 7pm: Group D winner v Group B runner-up
Positions 5-8: Feb 21: 4.45pm: Game 16 loser v game 18 loser; 7.15pm: Game 15 loser v game 17 loser
Semi-Finals: Feb 22: 4.45pm: Game 16 winner v Game 18 winner; 7.15pm: Game 15 winner v Game 17 winner
Positions 5-8: Feb 23: 4.45pm: Game 19 loser v game 20 loser; 7.15pm: Game 19 winner v Game 20 winner
Third-fourth place play-off: Feb 24: 3.30pm: Game 21 loser v Game 22 loser
Final: Feb 24: 6pm: Game 21 winner v Game 22 winner
Al Kass International Cup organisers and team officials pose after the meeting at the Torch Doha hotel yesterday.
